I too was plagued with the evil Prince of Darkness striking my lighting
switch in my '74 Midget, and it happened at night. Well after obtaining a
suitable Used replacement and having that one go within a year, I thought
about it. I found that if you reach up under the dashboard and touch the
switch, it is VERY hot! Too much current for the design.
I decided to fix the problem by using a relay to control the lights, and have
the lighting switch run the parking lights and energizing the relay which in
turn operated the high current lights. To improve on the system, I ran a #12
AWG wire from the hot side of the solenoid (battery power) to the relay for
the light power. This system has solved my problem, I mounted it so the
wires going to the headlights could reach the relay without any cutting or
stretching. I use this car as a daily driver all year, and have had no more
lighting switch problems. If anyone would like more detail, drop me an
E-mail.
Rick Brodeur
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